Check Engine Code P2122

[spierce7]

I have a 2004 Lexus ES 330, and I started receiving Check Engine Code P2122. My code reader lists it as: Throttle / Pedal Position Sensor / Switch D Circuit Low. The car doesn't respond nearly as well when you press the gas pedal down now, and obviously isn't safe to drive. Not sure where to go from here. I'm not familiar with working on Lexus / Toyota cars. Any recommendations would be great.

[gbhrps]

spierce7,

Been there, done that. My wife's last ES330, a 2004, had the same issue. When the APPS goes bad it puts the car into Limp Mode, meaning it takes forever to get to 50 mph and it will not let you go any faster. Lexus is really saying, don't drive the car any distance until its fixed.

If your car Doesn't have the Power Pedals feature, you have an easy and relatively cheap fix. The APPS is bolted right to the accelerator pedal on the floor. It has a wiring harness plugged into it and the two bolts. Unplug the old sensor, remove the two bolts, and put on the new one, clear the DTC code and you're back in business. Be sure to look at your APPS. It may have 4 pins on the connector, or it may have 6 pins. Most parts suppliers can get the 4 pin one, but not the 6 pin. The 6 pin version comes with what I've written below.

However, if you have the Power Pedals feature ........ get ready to spend A LOT OF MONEY!  The only way Lexus will sell you the APPS ... is with the entire new Power Pedal assembly attached to it. That's right, new brake pedal, new accelerator pedal, the new sensor, an entire new bracket assembly for all of it, plus the motors and flex drive cables for everything. It comes as all one piece. Here in Canada  .... priced at $1200. And the pain doesn't end there. The dash and the steering column have to come out of the car to take out the old system and install the new one.

I found a parts dealer in California that was able to sell me the entire new pedal assembly for about $350. I removed the accelerator pedal (with the sensor still attached to it) from the new unit and just installed the new pedal in my car. Total fix time was 20 minutes in my driveway, ... and then I threw the rest of the Power Pedal assembly away. This was 4 years ago, and when finished, the car immediately ran like a top. We traded the 330 6 months later for her present ES350.

My advice would be to get a good independent mechanic to verify that the sensor is indeed bad, and then I'd search eBay and wrecking yards across the US and Canada for a wrecked ES330 with the Power Pedals feature and try to buy the used pedal and sensor. There's just one bolt and one nut that hold the entire accelerator pedal to the Power Pedal assembly. Awkward but simple to remove and replace. Good Luck!